SEASON FINALE

So the 2009/10 FA Cup has finished for another season, but the charity campaign that followed it from the start wasn’t there at the finish.

Despite clocking up thousands of miles following the competition, Runcorn2wembley was unable to complete its mission at Wembley.

The campaign, organised by brothers Richard and Robert Knowles has raised almost £4,500 for Cancer Research, but is short of the £5,000 target.

The duo started the campaign in August at Runcorn Linnets, all in the name of their father who played for a number of amateur clubs but died from cancer when they were young children.

Despite pleas to local councils, the football clubs, police and The FA, Runcorn2wembley was unable to carry out the main fundraising activity of collecting from fans outside the ground before the game.

The campaign was unable to collect or attend the semi final or final and therefore has fallen short of the £5,000 target.

Richard, from Frodsham, said: “We’re delighted to have raised so much money for a cause close to our hearts, but disappointed with the reaction of various organisations to Runcor2wembley attending the semi finals and final at Wembley.

“Being denied permission to collect at Wembley has meant we’ve not reached our target, although credit must be given to the fans and clubs that have been very welcoming to Runcorn2wembley.”

Robert, from Southport, is hoping online donations will continue to boost the total. He said: “The FA Cup may be over for this season, but fans can still donate online.

“I’m not sure we’ll be doing this again for the foreseeable future as Richard and I will both be parents by the time next season’s competition beings.”

To donate simply go to www.justgiving.co.uk/richard-knowles

SEMI FINAL ANYONE?

Well it's been an interesting journey from the start of the Runcorn2wembley campaign and we're now reached the semi final stage at Wembley.

Unfortunately no-one seems to be taking responsibility for giving permission to collect from fans before the Aston Villa v Chelsea game.

Brent Council, Wembley Stadium, The FA and the Met Police have all said they can't give permission. They've all mentioned one of the others as being the organisation to give the permission.

So with a week to go before the semi final Runcorn2wembley has no tickets, no collecting rights and no chance of reaching the £5,000 target. It's very frustrating as we're just £800 short.

What's most annoying is the 'big' clubs are providing no help at all to the campaign, completely the opposite to the smaller clubs earlier in the campaign.

Speaking of the 'helpful' clubs, Easter Monday provides an exciting clash for Guiseley FC as they face promotion rivals in the Unibond Premier League, Bradford Park Avenue.

I, along with a couple of other fundraisers, will hopefully be able to see the game and catch up with the people at Guiseley who helped us so much in the early stages of the campaign.

On a final note Runcorn2wembley will hopefully be at the FA Cup Trophy Tour when it visits Chelsea on Friday 9th April.

NO HELP FROM THE VILLA

With the FA Cup semi final between Aston Villa and Chelsea just over two weeks away, it's a disappointed editor that writes this update on Runcorn2wembley.

Aston Villa are the team the campaign is following to Wembley after the 4-2 win at Reading in the quarter final.

I've had a couple of weeks break from the campaign as my partner Sarah and I have been having scans on our first baby. Sometimes your priorities can change a little, but I'm back on the case for Runcorn2wembley and battling for coverage and donations to reach the £5,000 target.

Despite communication with Aston Villa the club has declined requests for any help with informing Villa fans about the campaign.

The club supports The Acorns Children's Hospice and has refused to help Runcorn2wembley in any way.

The Acorns Children's Hospice is a fantastic organisation and I don't want Runcorn2wembley to distract from that at all. Therefore I understand why Aston Villa wouldn't want to give lots of backing to the campaign, but to offer nothing is very disappointing.

I've had more contact with The FA and hope to have a little more help from them for the semi-final.

On a final note I'll be missing the spring Frodsham Beer Festival to be at Wembley for the semi final so hope Runcorn2wembley will collect a big amount as we look go from the current total of £4,195.81 to the target of £5,000.

SIXTH ROUND PROSPECTS

With just two rounds of the 2009/10 FA Cup to go before the final at Wembley, Runcorn2wembley is facing the possibility of having no pre-match collections for the rest of the campaign.

Reading has denied us permission to collect before the game against Aston Villa, as the club limits collections from a charity to one per season. The club has also refused to allow any tickets to be set aside for Runcorn2wembley, even if the volunteers pay for them.

This means we'll be lucky to get any tickets for the game, which would mean the campaign misses out on its first game in this season's FA Cup.

Having been to the previous 11 rounds of the competition, this would be very disappointing.

The only hope we have now collect another £800 to hit the £5,000 target for Cancer Research, is for fans to donate online - www.justgiving.co.uk/richard-knowles

More updates later this week as they come in.

ROYAL VISIT IS UP NEXT

The FA Cup 4th round is just days away and the fundraising total for Runcorn2wembley is rising fast.

Donations to the Just Giving website (www.justgiving.co.uk/richard-knowles) have taken the total to just under £3,200, so I'm hopeful of reaching the £5,000 target by the final at Wembley in May.

No rest for the Runcorn2wembley team though as it looks like this weekend could leave us without a collection at the game.

Reading host our current team Burnley at the Madejski Stadium for a 12.45pm ko, but the club had already given permission for another charity to collect at this game - The Guide Dogs for the Blind, a very worthy cause.

Having been faced with a similar situation at the two previous games at Milton Keynes Dons, I resorted to contacting the local businesses (Asda proved a huge help in the last round with a record collection), including B&Q and BHS, but have been turned down.

This leaves only one way of collecting money for the campaign, by Reading 'donating' tickets for the 4-6 Runcorn2wembley fundraisers; the fundraisers will then donate the value of the tickets to the collection. I'm still waiting for feedback from Reading about this.

Members of the team will be at Reading to continue the road to Wembley, but with now little hope of raising any money for the campaign, Cancer Research UK.

Therefore I'm appealing to anyone reading this to pass it on to friends and tell as many people as possible about the online donations page to boost it further.

Simply go to www.justgiving.co.uk/richard-knowles

Meanwhile I'd like to thank the continued communication and help from everyone associated with Burnley FC, particularly Darren in the media department.

In other news The FA is looking to include Runcorn2wembley in the next Trophy Tour, though this is dependent on which team we'll be involved with next.

Coverage has featured in Chester, Runcorn, Milton Keynes, Reading and Liverpool media since Christmas. I'll link all that along with a preview on Friday.

THIRD ROUND PREVIEW

So the 2009-10 FA Cup reaches the 'glamour' of the third round, but for Runcorn2wembley this is the ninth round of our epic charity fundraising campaign, generating money for Cancer Research.

With over half the £5,000 target reached, the campaign will have eight collectors at the MK Dons v Burnley game tomorrow.

The current team we're following is MK Dons, although a Burnley win will change that and mean the path to Wembley will then tread the same steps as the Clarets.

Tomorrow's collectors will include Everton, Liverpool and Leeds United fans, all giving up a full day for collecting money for Cancer Research.

Fingers crossed the weather will be ok and the game will go ahead. With most of the collectors driving over 300 miles to the game I'm hoping for light traffic on the motorways.

The total raised will be on here on Sunday.

GRECIANS DOWN TOWN

A combination of work, personal committments and being stuck on our beloved motorways has led to me not updating the blog as often over the last two weeks.

I hope this post will cover most of the activity that's happened. On to the latest game and the FA Cup first round clash between Nuneaton Town and League 1 side Exeter City.

Firstly a big thank you to my brother Rob, neighbour Johnny and new 'Runcorn2wembley' friend and collector, Chris Horner.

The game at Nuneaton on Saturday was a big effort as it was the biggest crowd of the campaign and everyone worked wonders to collect and speak to supporters about the collection.

I'd also like to thank everyone associated with both clubs for the support and coverage before the game, and the hospitality shown by everyone at Nuneaton Town.

Without any of this the collection and campaign wouldn't have continued on its successful journey.

The game itself was witnessed by many pessemistic Exeter City fans, nearly all convinced they would be beaten.

Their fears were eased after just three minutes and by half time a 4-0 lead was not unexpected given the pressure on Nuneaton's goal, but a little flattering.

The second half Nuneaton performed very well and with a bit more luck could have scored at least a couple of goals, which would have made for an interesting finale.

As it was Exeter held on and now face another away trip, this time to fellow League 1 side Milton Keynes Dons.

A crowd of almost 2,500 at Nuneaton gave the campaign a huge boost as we raised £460, taking the grand total to almost £2,500; halfway to the target total for Cancer Research UK.

The date and kick off time of the next game at Milton Keynes Dons is yet to be confirmed but I suspect it'll be on Saturday 28th November at 3pm.

I hope to have ten people helping with collections at the game to make the most of a crowd in excess of 8,000.

To donate go to www.justgiving.co.uk/Richard-Knowles

COVERAGE CONTINUES WITH NUNEATON

As the next round of the FA Cup fast approaches, coverage of the FA Cup fundraising campaign for Cancer Research UK continues to attract media coverage.

'Runcorn2Wembley' has taken in different areas of northern England and the Midlands, but has always been followed by local and regional media outlets.

Some media have followed the campaign from the start and continue to do so, even as it travels to areas beyond it's circulation range.

The Chester Chronicle (my local weekly newspaper) regularly updates its readers of the progress and I'm pleased the total continues to rise at each report.

The football clubs have also covered the campaign which is very helpful when collecting at games as fans already know why we're there.

Nuneaton Town are the latest club to do so; the coverage can be seen by clicking here

The latest Chester Chronicle coverage can be seen here

A non-league website has also covered 'Runcorn2wembley' as the Unibond League (to which Guiseley and Kendal Town play in) featured the campaign. To view that click here

I've also found new coverage on the Guiseley Advertiser; it can be found here

The coverage is great to spread the word about the campaign, but it will only succeed if people donate via the online donation site.

To donate or see how much has been raised so far go to www.justgiving.co.uk/richard-knowles

A preview of the first round game between Nuneaton Town and Exeter City on Saturday will appear here on Friday.

COVERAGE IS KEY

After four rounds of the FA Cup, there is still a further ten rounds before the hallowed turf of the new Wembley Stadium welcomes the finalists of the 2009/10 competition.

For the current team I'm following, Guiseley AFC, this must seem a world away from the last match and win over Bamber Bridge.

While it is unlikely that Guiseley will reach the FA Cup Final, they will at least play a vital role in making the competition one of the world's best.

Without teams like Bamber Bridge, Guiseley and their next opponents, Kendal Town, the romance and history of the FA Cup would simply vanish. In a word, the smaller clubs, not the big ones, make the FA Cup what it is.

The next round (third qualifying) is just a week away and it promises to be a great game between Guiseley and Kendal Town. Both team occupy lofty positions in the Unibond Premier League so a lot is at stake.

I'm pleased to note further coverage in regional newspapers. The Chester Chronicle, Liverpool Echo, Liverpool Daily Post have continued with updates on the runcorn2wembley campaign, and now a new media outlet has covered it.

The Wharfedale Observer is now following the campaign's progress and I hope they continue to update people on the route it takes to Wembley.

To date the money raised is over £800; to donate just click here

Click on the relevant lnks below for the coverage:

Chester Chronicle

Wharfedale Observer

I'll be back with more thoughts early next week as we near the fifth round of the campaign.

Have a good weekend and may your football team win.

This weekend's fixtures for the clubs I've followed are:

Guiseley AFC V Woksop Town (LEAGUE)
Market Drayton Town v Bamber Bridge (FA TROPHY)
Squires Gate v Maine Road (LEAGUE)
Runcorn Linnets v St Helens Town (LEAGUE)

BLAST FROM THE PAST

As promised last week I've now scanned the Runcorn programme from 1961 featuring my dad, which has tied quite nicely in to the Runcorn2Wembley fundraising campaign for Cancer Research UK.

My dad played for a number of north west sides including Marine, Burscough and Runcorn.
I'm sure he'd love the irony of me starting my campaign with Runcorn this year, something I know is fitting.

A huge thank you to Runcorn Linnets chairman, Derek Greenwood for sourcing the programme and opening up a window in my dad's football career years before I and my brother Robert were born.

I'd welcome any comments from people who either played with my dad or watched him play.

He was still playing regularly until his early 40s, and showed Rob and I the proper way to play the game.

I hope to see many old and new faces at Maine Road FC on Saturday for the FA Cup First Qualifying Round against Bamber Bridge.

Mathc preview to follow later this week.

From the beginning

The planning

After four years of planning I'm finally getting round to following the FA Cup from the first round to the final - all in the name of charity (Cancer Research UK). By the first round I mean the Extra Preliminary Round, which involves 406 teams battling to get on the 'Road to Wembley'.

Without replays there is scheduled to be 14 games so there could be lots of travelling. I'll be paying my entry to each ground and hope to raise money by shaking my bucket in the crowd, before, during and after the game.

I'll be detailing my journey through this blog and twittering (richthemaster) my thoughts and plans. Anyone who wants to join me at one or more match please let me know.

To donate either give me the money direct, come to one of the games (details to follow) or go to www.justgiving.com/richard-knowles